All Defendants Sentenced in More Than $20 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme Led by Former Dallas Cowboy Eugene Lockhart

DALLAS—Eugene Lockhart, Jr. was sentenced this week by U.S. District Judge Jorge A. Solis to 54 months in federal prison and ordered to pay approximately $2.4 million in restitution following his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, stemming from his leadership role in a massive mortgage fraud scheme that he and others ran in the Dallas area from approximately 2002 to 2005. Lockhart, of Carrollton, Texas, is the last of 10 defendants who were convicted in the scheme to be sentenced. Lockhart played for the Dallas Cowboys from 1984 to 1990 and used his name and fame, according to evidence in the case, to get business and further the scheme. Judge Solis ordered that Lockhart, who has been on home confinement, surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on January 16, 2012. U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas made the announcement.
Others convicted and sentenced are:

• William Randolph Tisdale, of Dallas, also considered a leader of the scheme along with Lockhart, was convicted at trial on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of bank fraud. He was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison and ordered to pay approximately $1.1 million in restitution.
• Hubert Jones, III, of Garland, Texas, who acted as a lieutenant for Tisdale, was convicted on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of bank fraud, and one count of wire fraud. He was sentenced to 58 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $681,545 in restitution.
• Lendell Beacham, of Desoto, Texas, a mortgage company owner, was convicted on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of wire fraud. He was sentenced to 36 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $947,700 in restitution.
• Patricia Ortega Suarez, of Dallas, an escrow officer, pleaded guilty to two counts of making a false statement to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison and ordered to pay approximately $1 million in restitution.
• Michael Anthony Caldwell, of Arlington, Texas, who was a manager for a title company, pleaded guilty to one count of making a false statement to HUD. He was sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison and ordered to pay $445,100 in restitution.
• Donna Lois Kneeland, of Grand Prairie, Texas, also an escrow officer, pleaded guilty to one count of making a false statement to HUD. She was sentenced to a three-year term of probation and ordered to pay $135,000 in restitution.
• Bryan J. Moorman, of Mesquite, Texas, who acted as a real estate appraiser, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and was also sentenced to a three-year term of probation. He was also ordered to pay $281,200 in restitution.
• Jermaine Frederick Frazier, of Desoto, who acted as a loan processor and lieutenant for Lockhart, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison and ordered to pay approximately $2 million in restitution.
• Scott David Eller, 45, of Mansfield, Texas, a CPA, was convicted on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison and ordered to pay approximately $1.7 million in restitution.

Lockhart was involved with real estate entities, some formed by him and Tisdale, which had names that were often derived in some fashion from a reference to the Dallas Cowboys, including America’s Team Mortgage; America’s Team Realty; America’s Team Funding Group; Ace Mortgage; Cowboys Realty; Cowboys Mortgage; and KLT Properties. Tisdale was involved with Pinnacle Development and Realty Corporation; Atilla Capital Corporation; and KLT Properties. Jones was involved with Pinnacle Development and Realty Corporation and Atilla Capital Corporation.
The defendants ran a scheme in which they located single-family residences for sale in the Dallas area, including distressed and pre-foreclosure properties, and negotiated a sales price with the seller. They created surplus loan proceeds by inflating the sales price to an arbitrary amount substantially more than the fair market value of the residence.
Generally, they recruited individuals to act as nominee or “straw purchasers” or “straw borrowers,” promising to pay them a bonus or commission of between $10,000 and $20,000 for their participation in a particular real estate transaction. The conspirators caused the loan applications for each straw borrower to include false financial information, often including inflated false income figures to conceal the borrower’s true financial condition so that the lender would more likely approve the loan. The conspirators concealed from the lenders the true status, financial conditions, and intentions of the named borrowers, knowing that loans would not likely be approved if the lender knew the true role, credit worthiness, and risk of each straw borrower. The conspirators falsely represented in loan documents that the straw purchaser intended to use the property as their primary residence, intentionally concealing from the lender that each straw borrower viewed himself as an “investor,” who never intended to occupy the home.
Some of the conspirators also caused bogus and fraudulent “marketing fees” to be listed on loan closing documents to provide a means for the conspirators to receive surplus/excess loan proceeds.
The scope of the conspiracy involved approximately 54 fraudulent residential property loan closings resulting in the funding of approximately $20.5 million in fraudulent loans. The actual loss to lenders is nearly $3 million.
Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices, and state and local partners, it is the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory, and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state, and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions, and other organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed more than 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants, including more than 2,700 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.
The case was investigated by the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorneys David L. Jarvis and Mark Penley prosecuted.

Suspect Wanted for Five Bank Robberies

Stephen D. Anthony, Special Agent in Charge of the Cleveland Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for the Northern District of Ohio, is seeking information regarding an individual suspected of being responsible for five area bank robberies since October 26, 2012.
The five bank robberies have occurred at the following locations: Dollar Bank, 5201 Wilson Mills Road, Richmond Heights, Ohio, on October 26, 2012; PNC Bank, 2233 Warrensville Center Road, University Heights, Ohio, on October 30, 2012; Ohio Savings Bank, 14033 Cedar Road, South Euclid, Ohio, on November 19, 2012; Dollar Bank, 6563 Brecksville Road, Independence, Ohio, on November 26, 2012; and US Bank, 2211 Lee Road, Cleveland Heights, Ohio, on December 13, 2012.
The subject is believed to be Cetric Sumpter. Sumpter is described as a black male with brown eyes and black hair, 28-years-old, approximately 5’8” tall, and weighing approximately 165 lbs.
Any information regarding the location of Cetric Sumpter should be directed to the Cleveland FBI Field Office at 216-522-1400. Tips can remain anonymous.
A reward is being offered for information leading to the identification and arrest of Cetric Sumpter, the individual believed to be responsible for these five bank robberies.
Any questions regarding this press release should be directed to SA Vicki D. Anderson at 216-522-1400 or vicki.anderson@ic.fbi.gov.
Photos of the suspect, including at robberies, are below.

Robbery at Dollar Bank at 5201 Wilson Mills Rd., Richmond Heights, Ohio, on October 16, 2012
Robbery at PNC Bank st 2233 Warrensville Ctr. Rd. in University Heights, Ohio, on October 30, 2012
Robbery at Ohio Savings Bank at 14033 Cedar Rd., South Euclid, Ohio, on November 19, 2012
Robbery at Dollar Bank at 6563 Brecksville Rd., Independence, Ohio, on November 26, 2012
Robbery at U.S. Bank at 2211 Lee Rd., Cleveland Heights, Ohio, on December 13, 2012

Columbine pt.1

On April 20, 1999, in the small, suburban town of Littleton, Colorado, two high-school seniors, Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris, enacted an all-out assault on Columbine High School during the middle of the school day. The boys' plan was to kill hundreds of their peers. With guns, knives, and a multitude of bombs, the two boys walked the hallways and killed. When the day was done, twelve students, one teacher, and the two murderers were dead; plus 21 more were injured. The haunting question remains: why did they do it?
The Boys: Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris
Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris were both intelligent, came from solid homes with two parents, and had older brothers who were three years their senior. In elementary school, Klebold and Harris had both played in sports such as baseball and soccer. Both enjoyed working with computers.
The boys met each other while attending Ken Caryl Middle School in 1993. Though Klebold had been born and raised in the Denver area, Harris' father had been in the U.S. Air Force and had moved the family several times before he retired and moved his family to Littleton, Colorado in July 1993. When the two boys entered high school, they found it difficult to fit into any of the cliques.^* As is too common in high school, the boys found themselves frequently picked on by athletes and other students.
However, Klebold and Harris seemed to spend their time doing normal teenager activities. They worked together in a local pizza parlor, liked to play Doom (a computer game) in the afternoons, and worried about finding a date to the prom. For all outward appearances, the boys looked like normal teenagers. Looking back, Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris obviously weren't your average teenagers.
Preparations
According to journals, notes, and videos that Klebold and Harris left to be discovered, Klebold had been thinking of committing suicide as early as 1997 and they both had begun thinking about a large massacre as early as April 1998 - a full year before the actual event.
By then, the two had already run into some trouble. On January 30, 1998, Klebold and Harris were arrested for breaking into a van. As part of their plea agreement, the two began a juvenile diversion program in April 1998. Since they were first-time offenders, this program allowed them to purge the event from their record if they could successfully complete the program. So, for eleven months, the two attended workshops, spoke to counselors, worked on volunteer projects, and convinced everyone that they were sincerely sorry about the break-in. However, during the entire time, Klebold and Harris were making plans for a large-scale massacre at their high school.
Klebold and Harris were angry teenagers. They were not only angry at athletes that made fun of them, or Christians, or blacks, as some people have reported; they basically hated everyone except for a handful of people. On the front page of Harris's journal, he wrote: "I hate the fucking world." Harris also wrote that he hates racists, martial arts experts, and people who brag about their cars. He stated:

You know what I hate? Star Wars fans: get a friggin life, you boring geeks. You know what I hate? People who mispronounce words, like 'acrost,' and 'pacific' for 'specific,' and 'expresso' instead of 'espresso.' You know what I hate? People who drive slow in the fast lane, God these people do not know how to drive. You know what I hate? The WB network!!!! Oh Jesus, Mary Mother of God Almighty, I hate that channel with all my heart and soul."¹

Both Klebold and Harris were serious about acting out on this hate. As early as spring 1998, they wrote about killing and retaliation in each other's yearbooks, including an image of a man standing with a gun, surrounded by dead bodies, with the caption, "The only reason your [sic] still alive is because someone has decided to let you live."²
Klebold and Harris used the Internet to find recipes for pipe bombs and other explosives. They amassed an arsenal, which eventually included guns, knives, and 99 explosive devices.
Klebold and Harris wanted to kill as many people as possible, so they studied the influx of students in the cafeteria, noting that there would be over 500 students after 11:15 a.m. when the first lunch period began. They planned to plant propane bombs in the cafeteria timed to explode at 11:17 and then shoot any survivors as they came running out.
There is some discrepancy whether the original date planned for the massacre was to be April 19 or 20. April 19 was the anniversary for the Oklahoma City Bombing and April 20 was the 110th anniversary of Adolf Hitler's birthday. For whatever reason, April 20 was the date finally chosen.
* Though some claimed they were part of the Trench Coat Mafia, in truth, they were only friends with some of the group's members. The boys didn't usually wear trench coats to school; they did so only on April 20 to hide the weapons they were carrying as they walked across the parking lot.

 http://youtu.be/4u2j7hM8MPo

Las Vegas Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Robbing Three Banks in May 2011

ALBUQUERQUE—This morning in federal court in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Justin A. Wolaver, 27, of Las Vegas, Nevada, was sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment for robbing three banks, including a bank in Raton, New Mexico, in May 2011. Wolaver will be on supervised release for five years after he completes his prison sentence. He also was ordered to pay full restitution to each of the three victim banks.
U.S. Attorney Kenneth J. Gonzales said that Wolaver pled guilty on July 27, 2012, to (1) the armed robbery of Bank of America in Hudson, Florida, on May 2, 2011; (2) the robbery of Chase Bank in Flagstaff, Arizona, on May 9, 2011; and (3) the armed robbery of the Bank of America in Raton on May 23, 2011.
Court records reflect that Wolaver was arrested after robbing the Bank of America in Raton at gunpoint on May 23, 2011. Wolaver walked into the bank, approached the bank teller, displayed what appeared to be a handgun, and verbally demanded money. After the bank teller provided cash to Wolaver, he fled in a small, white sedan. Officers of the Raton Police Department followed the sedan with lights and sirens as it left the bank. Officers of the New Mexico State Police and Colfax County Sheriff’s Office joined the pursuit when Wolaver tried to outrun the police. Wolaver was apprehended approximately 40 miles south of Raton. After his arrest, Wolaver confessed to robbing the Bank of America in Raton. He also confessed to robbing two other banks earlier that month.
Wolaver has been in federal custody since May 24, 2011. On July 27, 2012, Wolaver agreed to waive his right to be prosecuted in the judicial districts where he committed the out of state crimes and to plead guilty to the bank robberies in Florida and Arizona in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico.
The case was investigated by the Albuquerque Field Office of the FBI, the Raton Police Department, the New Mexico State Police, and the Colfax County Sheriff’s Office and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shammara H. Henderson.

FBI Atlanta Presents Director’s Community Leadership Award

ATLANTA—Today, Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Mark F. Giuliano, FBI Atlanta, presented the Director’s Award for Community Leadership for 2012 to Soumaya Khalifa, founder and executive director of the Islamic Speakers Bureau of Atlanta (ISB). In this role, Ms. Khalifa has facilitated numerous interactive presentations and workshops within the community to provide for a better understanding of American Muslims and how they live their lives. On April 5, 2013, FBI Director Robert S. Mueller will host all of the FBI’s 56 selectees from around the country at a national ceremony to be held at FBI Headquarters with Ms. Khalifa present as Atlanta FBI’s honoree.
Ms. Khalifa, born in Alexandria, Egypt, raised in Texas, and earning degrees at the University of Houston and Georgia State University, saw the need to educate and inform others unfamiliar with the Islamic faith based communities. As an extension of her duties at the ISB, Ms. Khalifa is president of her consulting firm, Khalifa Consulting, which specializes in various diversity based training.
Ms. Khalifa is a recent graduate of the FBI’s Citizens Academy and has added valuable insight into various issues surrounding her community and serves as a conduit to other communities within the Atlanta area. Under her leadership, the ISB is committed to upholding the right to freedom of expression and unconditionally condemns any use of violence as a means to protest offensive or hateful speech.
In addition, Ms. Khalifa works with students, business executives, and even military members in providing an informative lunch time program used to address common stereotypes regarding the Muslim community.

Four-Time Fraudster Sentenced to 44 Months in Prison

BALTIMORE—U.S. District Judge Marvin J. Garbis sentenced Ronald Louis Coleman, age 65, of Baltimore, today to 44 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for using one or more unauthorized credit and/or debit cards. Judge Garbis also ordered Coleman to pay restitution of $102,314.54.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein and Special Agent in Charge Stephen E. Vogt of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
According to Coleman’s plea agreement, from March through December 9, 2011, Coleman possessed a skimmer device, which he provided to an employee of a popular Baltimore restaurant so that the employee could obtain the credit card numbers from patrons of the restaurant as they paid their bills. The employee skimmed a number of cards each week and then turned the skimmer over to Coleman, who downloaded the information using a computer. Coleman used the information to encode blank cards with the stolen credit card account number and then he and others used the cards to obtain cash at ATMs and to purchase merchandise and services.
During the same time, Coleman directed other individuals to call American Express, posing as an American Express employee, to obtain access to active and closed accounts in the American Express computer system. In this way, Coleman caused American Express to remove holds that were placed on accounts, to issue unauthorized credit cards, and to have those cards mailed to an address provided by Coleman. Coleman removed the cards from the mail, or directed others to do so, and then he and others used the unauthorized cards to make purchases. A search of Coleman’s home on December 9, 2011, recovered three blank cards encoded with different American Express credit card numbers belonging to individuals living outside Maryland. The investigation showed that at least 10 American Express accounts were compromised, and the total loss to American Express is between $70,000 and $120,000.
At the time of this activity, Coleman was on supervised release for a previous federal conviction related to credit card fraud and had been convicted of similar crimes two other times.
Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices, and state and local partners, it is the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory, and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state, and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions, and other organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed more than 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,700 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein thanked the FBI for its work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein praised Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard C. Kay, who is prosecuting the case.